Experimental Study of the Gelation Behavior of a Polyacrylamide/Aluminum Citrate Colloidal-Dispersion Gel System

The gelation behavior of a polyacrylamide/aluminum citrate colloidal-dispersion gel (CDG) system was investigated in sandpacks at frontal advance rates of 2 ft/D. A gelatinous mass formed where the gelant encountered a change in flow medium. Permeabilities of homogeneous media were reduced only by factors that were similar to those obtained with a polymer displacement alone. A laboratory investigation of a polyacrylamide/aluminum citrate CDG system was conducted to determine whether the system develops in-depth permeability modification in unconsolidated sandpacks. The study includes flow of the polymer and in-situ gelation behavior of the gelant in porous media and aggregate growth during the gelation reaction in beakers. Flow experiments were conducted in long unconsolidated sandpacks in which the gel solution was mixed in-line before injection. Injection rates were designed to provide adequate residence time for the gel solution to develop in-situ flow resistance during displacements based on bulk gel characterization tests. Residual resistance factors were determined following a static rest period in which the sandpack was left saturated with the injected gel solution. For comparison, apparent viscosity and residual resistance factors were also determined for the polymer flowing through unconsolidated sandpacks. Membrane dialysis was used to study the aggregate size distribution of the gel system at selected times after mixing. In-depth in-situ flow resistance did not develop when the gelling solution was injected into the sandpacks at frontal advance rates of 2 ft/D. Propagation through the sandpack was similar to a polymer solution. Flow resistance was characterized by the formation of a gelatinous filter cake, which formed when the injected solution encountered a change in flow medium, such as a screen placed at the ends to retain sand in place, the interface between the 50-mesh coarse sand layer at the inlet and the rest of the sandpack, and void spaces. Delaying injection by 2 hours after mixing in-line (to simulate field conditions) resulted in severe front-end stripping of gel aggregates. In all cases, residual resistance factors for the gel solution were similar to those obtained with a polymer displacement alone. Effluent fractions from gel solution displacements never developed a gel structure, and their viscosities were significantly lower than the injected solution. In the study of gel size distribution, aggregates were not detected at reaction times of 4 and 8 hours.